Apparatus for charging and storing materials



v anllllllllklllllll a llllllllllll llll W. R. GRAHAM, JR., ETAL APPARATUS FOR CHARGING AND STORING MATERIALS April 15, 1952 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 Original Filed Feb. 17, 1945 Jase ob 5%- April 1952 w. R. GRAHAM, JR., ET AL 2,592,559

APPARATUS FOR CHARGING AND STORING MATERIALS Original Filed Feb. 17, 1945 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 April 1952 w. R. GRAHAM, JR., ETAL 2,592,559

APPARATUS FOR CHARGING AND STORING MATERIALS Original Filed" 1'!; 1945 s Sheebs-Sheet 5 a z I 3 a a2 Q F gi ' I At i at ented Apr. 15,

William a. cabin, Jr.,

Joseph Chrisman, Kansas Wilmette, 111., and City,-M0., assignors to American Dairies Incorporated, Kansas City,

0., fa. corporation of Maryland, and The Quaker Oats Company, Chicago, 111., a corporation of New Jersey, jointly e appncsoon February 17:, 1945, Serial M 5784506- p d n t pplication March r e Ne-jlficsvs This invention relates .to. improvements in. a process and apparatus for charging. and storing materials and refers more particularly to charging and storing facilities for -granular or pulverized dry materials which deteriorate in. an atmosphere of air. The present application is. a division of our copending application, serial No. 578,506, filed February. 17, 1945, titledv .A Process and Apparatus for Charging and Storing-Ma terials. v I

To limit and prevent in sofar as is possible storage deterioration it is proposed to contactand intimately intermix materials to be stored with an inert gas and introduce the products to stor age while maintaining a surrounding gaseous at mosphere, The gas is chargedwith the materials and remains as a preserving atmosphere while the products remain in'storage. V

The present invention has been devised, as an improvement over and methodand apparatus disclosed in Patents 2,351,853 dated June 20, 1944:, and 2353,02!) dated Ju1y,4, l9 i4. Besides providing an apparatus for mixing the materials to be stored withan inert gas prior tointroducing the materials to a storage vessel there is also furnished storage which is easily emptiedand within which a gas atmosphere is constantly maintained. I 1 A i.

One object of the 'inv'ention'is the preliminary mixing of the material to be stored with the inert gas.

Another object is the sealingof the mixing stage from the [storage receptacle by a.congestion of the, solids which permits. passage of the S lid material while retarding appreei'ably passage of the gas. v I Another object is the employment of a screw conveyor pivoted at one end, centrally of jth e storage vessel and driven both axiallyand as a sweep over the bottom of thestorage tank to evacuate material from all parts of the tank.

A further object is to provide plugs of packed or congested material in the sterage inlet and outlet which permit introduction or discharge of materials without seriously afiectingthe gas atmosphere in which the materials are stored.

Other and further objects of the invention will appear from the description which follows.

In the accompanying drawings which form a part of the instant specification and are to be read in conjunction therewithand in which like reference numerals are used 'to indicate like parts in the various views.

Fig. 1 is a, diagrammatic side elevational view of an apparatus embodying the invention, 4

Fig. 2 is an enlarged detail of the charging mechanism,

Big. 3 is an enlarged'view showing the mechanism for evacuating the storage vessel,

. Fig. 41's anenlarged. detail oi the; drive and clutch mechanism which forms a part of the apparatus sh wn, n Fi --3. Fig. 5 is a view taken along the line 5-5 in Fig. 4, and 6 I Fig.5 is amodifled type oi construction; ,for the outer extremity or ,free end of the screw conveyor shown in Figs. gentle. v

To simplifythe description and to render mere easily comprehensible the apparatus shown fin the various views it may be conveniently separated into three major parts, namely, the'cl'iarg} ing apparatus the storage vessel or tank, and the discharge mechanism. V A

A- brief description of the apparatus s'hdwn in Fig 1 will facilitatean understanding of the invention and, by following t e'pss ag eorme material through the system, it is believed'that the advantages and eatu'res of noveltywill be more readily compreherided. In thedescription. ground or pulverized dehydrated ro ag'eprop such as grass or alfalfa have been selected as the materials to be stored. .It is to be under stood, however, that the inventionis'nqt to lbe limited to the storage of these materials since it is applicable an'd'usablefas well'in the storage of allkinds of grain, flour, ground hay. ground corn cobs, chemicals,,coiiee, or. any pulverized material which deteriorates when stored in an atmosphere of air. r Referring to Fig. 1', the materialsto be stored are unloaded from a railway car diagrammatisally shown at 10 from which they a es-asses through achute or pipe into the enclosed load}- ing dock H. 1 From the'bin in the bottom'o'f the. clock the materials are picked up by .an elevator leg I2 through which they are passed upwardly and discharged through transfer duct 13 into a plurality of connected conveyor or mixing tubes [4. These tubes are serially connected; by cross overs IE to forina continuous .passae'efor the materials from the upper tubefto the lower tube I la. Within each mixing tube is an open night conveyor screw it pitched; tocausefcontinuous flow and agitation of the material through the tubes from top to bottom. Into -th'e;1ofwer Linining tube 14a isintroduced inert as, suchasfcfarbon dioxide, from a stora'efi tankqlfl. The gas is passed 'counterflow to the direction of flow oi the solid materials through the mixing tubes, Jil transfer pipe I3, and elevator 12 and eliminates air surrounding the material during its passage in contact therewith. Upon dischargelfromlthe lower mixing tube I 4a the materials are compacted in a congester tube l8 after which they are discharged into receptacle l9 and transported through conveyor 20, elevator 2|, and coriveyor tube 22 into storage tank 23. The functionpf the congester I8 is to permit passage of solids to the storage tank charging system but retard and hinder passage of gas, since it is desired to cause the gas to flow upwardly through the mixing tubes to precondition the material by driving of! the surrounding air. Prior to charging the material to be stored to storage vessel 23, the tank is flushed by introducing inert gas through pipe 24 into the bottom of the tank and exhausting air from the top of the tank through vent pipe 25 controlled by valve 26. In removing stored material from the tank 23, motor 69 is started and products accumulated in the conical bottom 23a of the tank are forced out by conveyor screw 28 which is driven by the motor. Material compacted in the tube 29 by the conveyor screw produces a seal permitting discharge of the solids while limiting loss of gas to an inconsequential amount. Thus, the seals established in the congester l9 and the discharge tube 29 assure the maintenance of an inert gas atmosphere within the tank since only a very slight pressure amounting to an inch or two of water is adequate upon the storage vessel.

The charging mechanism for introducing the material to the storage vessel and surrounding it with an atmosphere of inert gas is detailed in Fig. 2. The endless chain 39 carrying the elevator flights or buckets within the leg I2 is driven from motor 3|, worm and gear mechanism 32 and sprocket chain 33. From this same source of power is taken the chain drive 34 which operates the conveyor screws l6 within the mixing tubes. A separate chain drive 35, taken from the same power source, operates conveyor screw 36 in congester tube l8. Motor 31 through gears 38 drives a screw 39 in tube 29 which transports the material from the collector |9 into the bottom of the elevator leg 2|. Chain 49, upon which are mounted the buckets or flights which elevate the material in the tube 2|, is driven by a sprocket mounted on the end of the shaft which carries the conveyor screw 39. At the top of elevator leg 2| is a bracket which carries motor 4|. This motor drives the conveyor screw 42 located in tube 22 and moves the material raised by leg 2| from the elevator to the storage vessel 23.

Inert gas is produced in a gas manufacturing unit 43 and is charged by compressor 44 to storage tank 45 through pipe 46. Interposed in this line is a pressure control valve 46a which regulates the pressure in tank 45 by cutting the compressor unit on and off in order to maintain proper pressure in the tank. A pipe 24, as previously suggested, is connected into the bottom of the storage tank to chart inert gas thereto while air is being vented through pipe 25. A duct 4! connecting the compressor with the elevator leg 2| furnishes a means for removing inert gas from the leg and introducing it to the compressor where it is recompressed for use in the storage vessel or charging mechanism. A valve or damper 41a regulates the amount of gas withdrawn from the leg and prevents exhausting the gas atmosphere therein below a predetermined minimum. Inert gas is supplied to the elevator leg 2| from tank 45 through pipe 48 controlled by valve 49. A pipe 59 connecting tank 45 with the lower mixing tube |4a provides the connection for introducing inert gas into the mixing tube. A metering device and a valve 52 are positioned in the line 50 to control the flow of inert gas.

In operation, material is picked up from the loading dock bin and is passed upwardly through the elevator leg l2 and discharged through pipe |3 into the upper mixing tube. The conveyor screws in the tubes move the material through the successive tubes in a continuous travel and mix it with the atmosphere of inert gas. Note that the pitch of the conveyor screw flights in the successive tubes is reversed so that the material passes in one direction in the upper tube through the crossover and in a reverse direction in the tube below. On arriving at the bottom tube |4a it is discharged through a final crossover |5 into the congester tube l8. Any type of mixing device through which the material and gas are passed countercurrently to remove air from the material particles and surround them with an inert atmosphere is contemplated. The eilectiveness of such mixing and the time of contact are the factors of importance. An extension of the screw conveyor 36 within the tube |B is threaded to receive a nut 53. This nut 53 confines a coil spring 54 between the valve 55 and a washer 53. Spring 54 tends to constantly urge the valve against the discharge end of tube I8. As the material is moved through tube |8 it is compacted and congested within the tube by the screw acting against the force of the coil spring against the closure plate or valve 55. The compacted material in the tube retards the passage of gas since it acts as a plug in the tube causing the gas to flowthrough the path of least resistance upwardly through the mixing tubes I4. To prevent obstruction by an accumulation of solids in the gas line 50, where it enters tube Ma, there is provided a series of conveyor screw flights having their pitch reversed with respect to the other flights on the screw. The action of the flights with the reverse pitch is to move solids, tendin to accumulate in the end of tube Ma, away from the gas pipe and into the discharge crossover.

After being forced through the valve 55 the solids accumulate in collector box I9 equipped with a hinged top |9a which makes the valve mechanism and conveyor screws accessible for inspection and repair. From the collector the materials are moved by conveyor screw 39 into the elevator leg and are transferred from the top of the leg through pipe 51 into the horizontal conveyor tube 22. The discharge from this conveyor tube is through pipe 59 into the top of the storage vessel.

An explanation will now be given of the evacuating mechanism for removing the materials from the bottom of the storage vessel, the details of which are shown in Figs. 3, 4, 5 and 6. Centrally of the bottom of the storage vessel is a conicalshaped well 59 which is shaped at its bottom to receive the discharge tube 29 in which conveyor 28 rotates. The drive for the conveyor 28 is from motor 69 through reduction gearing not shown and belt 6|. At the end of conveyor screw 28 is a valve arrangement similar to that shown at 55 in Fig. 2 so that the material discharged through tube 29 is congested and compacted into a plug to prevent appreciable loss of storage gas.

To avoid the necessity of building the storage vessel 23 with a steep hopper bottom there is provided in the vessel a screw conveyor pivoted at the center, rotatable both on its axis and as a sweep over the bottom of the vessel. This conveyor screw comprises a horizontal shaft 62 upon which are flights 63 connected as a continuous thread or screw pitched to move the material radially toward the center of the storage vessel, The shaft 62 of the conveyor screw bears at 64 and 65 in a housing 66 positioned centrally of the vessel. Mounted on shaft 62 is a bevel gear 61 which seems meshes" with gear- 68 on" vertical shaft- 59-. The

vertical shaft'rotates-inan upper bearing it and" Upper bearing ll), gear prevent bridging of the material in the well and assurea constant supply to the conveyorscrew 28;

On the'outer' end of the conveyor screw shaft is mounted a fluidcouplingorto'rque converter comprising an outer casing or housing free to rotate upon-the shaft and on the'periphery' of which are conveyor screw flights 15 of somewhat greater diameter than flight 63'. Within thehousing are radial vanes' 'lfi which extend only a portion of the distance-between the housing. and the shaft, as shown-in Fig. 5. Fixedly mountednear the end of the shaft 62 and within the housing'are vanes "extending radially from the shaft'and adapted to register or align'with the vanes 16 in the housing atone point in their rotation, as shown in Fig. 5.- Withinthe housing and surrounding these vanes is-a hydraulic fluidwhich, under the influence of the rotating inner vanes, imposes a torque on the outer vanes and thustendsto causethe housingto rotate with the conveyor shaft; Since the flights 15 on the housing'roll upon the floor of the storage vessel the conveyor screw will not only be rotated axially but will rotate about its pivoted center as a sweep over the bottom of the storage vessel floor. By virtue of thefluid coupling, the sweep is always urged forwardly but only at such a rate as the conveyor screwta can clear a path foritself by feeding the material inwardly-to ward the wel1 59; that is to say; if the floor is relatively barren, the sweep will advance quite rapidly; but when the material-in thebin offers substantial resistance to such advance, the fluid coupling will permit slip or lost motion between the conveyor shaft and the-housing is, so that the conveyor screw can continue to turn about its own axis at the same speed but will advance circumferentially more slowly. The fluid coupling thus is a flexible'variable speed-ratio torque converter or power transmission acting in principle much like a slip clutch. Flights l5 act not only as rollers for the'outer end of the conveyor screw but clear a path adjacent the wall of the tank or vessel by moving the material toward the center of the storage vessel besides rotating the sweep. In this type construction there is positioned upon the inner" wall of the vessel above the end of the screw an angle 78 forming a continuous ledge which prevents the screw from climbing during its travel about its pivot. The modified construction'shown in Fig. 6 substitutes screw" '19 of smaller diameter'for the larger diameter flights and fluid coupling mechanism shown in Fig. 4. In this modification the smaller screw'rotates between'shelves or ledges 18 and.8ll, being; supported on the lower ledge 80 and prevented from climbing by the upper ledge 78. These ledges or rings extend entirely around the interior of the vessel and serve as supports and guides for the free end of the conveyor sweep. In either construction whether flights of larger diameter or smaller diameter be used at the end. of the conveyor screw the function of the auxiliary flights is the same, namely, to support the shaft against the weight of material so the main screw will not build up a friction load in the bottom of the tank and to clear its own path free of material.

The fluidcoupling is'lmpjortant primarily fromthe viewpoint of minimizing wear on the'conveyor apparatus and storage tank. In other words, it is desirable and useful though not essential to the operation of the discharge mechanism.

The drive for the screw conveyor shaft 62*is' from motor 21. Motor 21 througha-wormand gear 8| drives a verticalshaft 69. Shaft 62 is driven from the vertical shaft'through bevelled gearsfi'l andtfi. A liquid seal 82 prevents loss of gas where'shaft t9 enters the conical we1l'59.

In'operation, when it is desired'to remove'ma' terial from the storage vessel motors!!! and* 60" are started. Screw 28 moves material acc'umu lated'in the well 5S3 out through the dischargetube" 29" where" his compacted in thewform of' a plugfbefore being discharged to-prevent lossof the storage gas. To prevent arching cr bridgln'g: of'thematerial in the conical well and failure ofsupply to the conveyor 28 the rotating conveyor shaft 62 tends to continuously'move material along the fioor of the storage vessel into'the well. Bridging of the material around the-screw is prevented by rotation of the conveyor screw about its pivot so material from the storage vessel is fed uniformly from all parts ofthe vessel" into the central well.

It is recognized thatthe conception of a radial screw conveyor rotatable bothupon its axis and as a sweep within a storage vessel is known; Such an arrangement has been practiced with varying degrees of success.

fore. Also-the use of a coupling mechanism inconnection with the screw conveyor to produce periodic or continuous operation of the sweep is a unique arrangement over conventional practice.

The proposed arrangement will satisfactorily unload material which does not flow freely from storage bins constructed with flat bottoms and permits the use of a storage vessel of greater capacity in the same amount of space besides reducing the cost of construction of the vessel.

From the explanation it will be seen that there is provided a system in which ground material subject to deterioration on storage in, air is first passed through a charging mechanism wherein the air atmosphere is exhausted and an inert atmosphere substituted. In this charging mechanism occluded air'about the particles is removed and the material advanced through a plug into a storage vessel. In the storage vessel an inert atmosphere is continuously maintained by the plug in the charging mechanism and a plug continuously maintained in the discharge outlet. To remove the material from the storage a conveyor screw, pivoted centrally of the storage vessel,v is rotated upon its axis and as a sweep over the floor of the vessel in order to move material uniformly from all parts of the storage tank into a;

central well. From thewell the material is discharged through a compacting conveyor tube where loss of gas from the storage vessel ispre- Theuse, however, of con-' veyor" screw flights of greater diameter at" the ployed without reference to other features and subcombinations. This is contemplated by and is within the scope of the claims.

.As many possible embodiments may be made of the invention without departing from the scope thereof it is to be understood that all matter herein set forth or shown-in the accompanying drawings is to be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.

Having thus described our invention we claim:

1. An evacuating mechanism for tanks in which are to be stored material sluggishly fiowable comprising a screw conveyor radially positioned adjacent the tank bottom and pivoted at one of its ends centrally of the tank, a power source drivingly connected to the conveyor and adapted to rotate the conveyor upon its axis, traction mechanism at the outer end of the conveyor for moving the conveyor around its pivot in a rotative sweep over the tank bottom, a coupling between said conveyor and said traction mechanism whereby the rotation of said conveyor is transmitted to said mechanism to drive same, and said coupling constructed and arranged to permit lost motion between said conveyor and said mechanism when said material resists the advance of said traction mechanism.

2. In combination with a bin having a floor, a central pivot with an elongated screw conveyor extending radially outward therefrom, the outer end of the conveyor rotatably mounted in and supported by a wheel so the conveyor is spaced slightly above the floor throughout its length, a source of power connected to the inner end of the screw conveyor for rotating same about its own longitudinal axis, and power transmission means between the conveyor and wheel operative at times to transmit the conveyors rotation to said wheel thereby to cause the end of the conveyor to advance along the floor in an arcuate path about said pivot as a center.

3. A combination as in claim 2 wherein said power transmission means comprises a variable speed-ratio torque converter.

4. A combination as in claim 2 wherein said power transmission means is constructed and arranged to permit lost motion between said conveyor and said wheel when the material in the bin oiTers resistance to the advance of the conveyor in said arcuate path.

5. A combination as in claim 2 wherein said wheel has a screw thread tread.

6. A combination as in claim 2 wherein said power transmission means comprises two sets of vanes one connected to the wheel and the other connected to the conveyor, and a body of liquid common to the vanes for transmitting the motion of one set to the other.

'7. In combination with a bin having a floor, a sweep mechanism adapted to move in a circular path over the floor, said mechanism comprising a pivot central of the floor, a pair of coaxial screw conveyors connected end to end for independent rotation about their common axis, said conveyors being of difierent diameter, means for anchoring the end of the smaller conveyor to said pivot so the smaller conveyor is supported above the floor between the larger conveyor and the pivot, a source of power connected to the anchored end of the smaller conveyor to rotate same about its longitudinal axis, and power transmission means between the two conveyors operative at times to transmit the smaller conveyors rotation to the larger conveyor.

8. A combination as in claim 'I wherein said power transmission means comprises two sets of vanes connected to the respective conveyors, and a body of liquid common to the vanes for transmitting the motion of one set to the other.

9. In combination with a bin having a floor, a central pivot with an elongated screw con veyor extending radially outward therefrom, said conveyor having at its outer end a shaft extension encircled by a hollow container rotatably mounted on said extension, vanes on the interior of said container and on said shaft extension, a source of power connected to the inner end of said screw conveyor for rotating same about its longitudinal axis, and a body of liquid in said container adapted at times to transmit the rotation of the vanes on the shaft extension to the vanes on the container.

10. A combination as in claim 9 wherein said container is a hollow cylinder coaxial with said screw conveyor and having a screw flight on the exterior of the cylinder.

11. In combination with a bin having a fioor, a central pivot with an elongated screw conveyor extending radially outward therefrom, a second screw conveyor coaxial with said first conveyor and connected to the outer end thereof for in dependent rotation about the common axis of the two conveyors, a support for said second conveyor encircling said central pivot whereby said second conveyor upon rotation is adapted to travel in an orbit about said pivot, said support and said second conveyor constructed and arranged to maintain said common axis of the two conveyors elevated above said floor by a distance exceeding the radius of the flights of said conveyor whereby said first conveyor is spaced above the fioor, a source of power connected to the inner end of said first conveyor for turning it about its own axis, and power transmission means between the two conveyors at times causing said second conveyor to turn with said first conveyor and at other times permitting said first conveyor to turn alone.

12. A combination as in claim 11 wherein said power transmission means comprises a variable speed-ratio torque converter.

13. A combination as in claim 11 wherein said power transmission means is constructed and arranged to permit lost motion between said conveyors when the material in the bin oifers resistance to the advance of the conveyors in said orbit.

14. A combination as in claim 11 wherein said power transmission means comprises a fluid coupling.

15. A combination as in claim 11 wherein the flights of said first conveyor are smaller in diameter than the flights of said second conveyor.

16. A combination as in claim 11 wherein the flights of said first conveyor are larger in diameter than the flights of said second conveyor.

WILLIAM R. GRAHAM, JR. JOSEPH CHRISMAN.

REFERENCES CITED UNITED STATES PATENTS Name Date Holmgreen Aug. 13, 1918 Number 

